(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has welcomed reforms passed by the Togolese National Assembly amending the press and communications law so that press offences are no longer punishable by prison terms. In a 24 August 2004 extraordinary session, Parliament unanimously adopted the draft law. The new text replaces the 25 September 2002 law, previously considered one of […]
(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has welcomed reforms passed by the Togolese National Assembly amending the press and communications law so that press offences are no longer punishable by prison terms.
In a 24 August 2004 extraordinary session, Parliament unanimously adopted the draft law. The new text replaces the 25 September 2002 law, previously considered one of the most repressive in Africa. Thirty-four of its 112 articles were amended and four repealed.
The law’s major advance is the abolishing of prison sentences for press offences such as defamation and insult. Heavy fines of up to five million CFA francs (approx. US$9,200), however, remain. Nonetheless, the new law is considered much more liberal and respecting of press freedom than its predecessor.
“Even if the authorities in Togo have taken this step solely under pressure from the European Union (EU), we welcome this reform of the press code that will bring hope to every journalist in the country,” said RSF.
“We will, however, remain vigilant and wait to see how the law is applied. In fact, prison sentences are still in place in cases of journalists found guilty of incitement to theft, murder, racial hatred or subverting the security forces from ‘their duty to their country’.”
“If judges apply too broad an interpretation of these notions, there is the danger that journalists who are critical or provocative could still find themselves victims of arbitrary imprisonment,” the organisation added.
Amendment of the press and communication law was among the Togolese government’s commitments in Brussels on 14 April 2004, with a view to resuming cooperation between Togo and the EU, broken off in 1993 because of a weak Togolese democracy.
On 28 April, Communications Minister Pitang Tchalla set up an 11-member reform commission drawn from journalists’ organisations and unions, the Communications Ministry, the Togolese media observatory and the broadcast and communications authority. The new law passed by Togolese parliamentarians almost exactly mirrors the results of the commission’s work.
Another advance in the new law is the repeal of all articles allowing the interior minister to decree seizures or closures of newspapers, which had given rise to many abuses in the past. This role has now been given to the state prosecutor, who will be required to justify such decisions in advance.
One article of the draft law, in particular, was intensely debated. Article 104, which abolishes the use of custody for press offences, was withdrawn during its passage through Cabinet on 21 July, then reinstated after lengthy negotiations before the law commission on 6 August.
